Abstract

A classified list of the algae which have been
recorded from Tasmania and the adjacent islands.
This Record is based on the labours of many workers.
Probably the first Tasmanian seaweed to receive a
scientific name was the largest, though not the longest, of
them all, the giant kelp, Sarcophycus potatorum, gathered
during the survey of the Huon River and D'Entrecasteaux
Channel made by the Recherche and the Esperance in 1792-3.
The specific name was given to it by the French botanist
Labillardiere, who observed that the natives of Tasmania
"used portions of its great leaves folded into the form of
"a pouch, for the purpose of keeping fresh water."